MUMBAI, May 1, (AFP): A group of men strangled an Indian teenager and hung him from a tree after he embarked on a relationship with a girl from a higher social caste, police said Wednesday.

Two men, including the girl’s brother, and one juvenile have been arrested over the murder of the 17-year-old Monday in Kharda village in the western state of Maharashtra. Police say they are looking for another seven men connected to the case. “The girl’s brother along with a few friends saw the couple sitting in a field. Emotions ran high.

They assaulted the boy, beat him up and strangled him with a rope. Later they hung him from the tree,” Dheeraj Patil, the senior investigating officer, told AFP. The hereditary-based caste system remains deeply rooted in many parts of India and pervades various aspects of daily life, particularly in remote and rural areas. It can dictate marriage, education, employment and land ownership, despite the fact that caste-based discrimination is outlawed.

For centuries, India has also seen killings targeting young couples in relationships of which their families, clans or communities disapprove — particularly in traditional rural areas. In these attacks known as “honour killings”, carried out to protect what is seen as family pride, reasons for disapproval can include having relationships outside of one’s caste or religion